Second Chance
by Illuminating-Darkness
Summary: Roy has been a wanted arsonist for 2 years. His plans all backfired and he's got nowhere to go. Then, at once, Riza comes back into his life and a chain of events start. ROYAI. My first fanfic
1. Chapter 1: Meeting

**Disclaimer: I do not own FMA  
**

* * *

Roy Mustang. Those two words were one spoken with admiration, jealousy, or hatred. Now, those two same words were always whispered by people in small groups, whether on the road or at a workplace, in hushed tones as if the person in question could actually be listening in. The Roy Mustang in question that had made headlines many, many times, all for the wrong reasons and roused so much fear and reverence in the people was a former Colonel of the army, and also, on top of that former State Alchemist. However, the name Roy Mustang now, belonged to an extremely dangerous convict. The public had been warned to stay away from him at all costs and sightings of him must be reported with all due haste. They had no leads on him, the public had been told to keep a eye out for him, but most of them had no idea what he looked like, after burning a building, he would escape quickly and into the night.

Everything had gone wrong. Instead of him exposing the military for what they really were, _**they**_ had cornered him. He had been given the death sentence for high treason. Even now, he could still see the smirk on his enemies faces as they caught him and his sentence was read out. His loyal team, his closest friends, Hawkeye and the others, had gotten off easier than him, because they were the only working under him and taking orders from a superior officer, or so they had thought, he was grateful that all that had happened to them was that they were forced to resign from the military. They had new lives now; Roy only hoped they were good ones as he had not risked visiting them. They were now just civilians, but people like them could probably quite easily rebuild their lives from nothing.

He himself was still rebelling against the military, the only difference was that he was alone now. He would break into, and after gathering information, burn down any building that was associated with the president he was trying to overthrow. This was not only satisfying, but useful. He was now an arsonist, and his name, unsurprisingly, was now spoken with fear and in amazement.

* * *

Riza groaned, and then looked over at the alarm clock on her bedside table. It was still early, the numbers on the screen told her it was only three in the morning. She had been having that same old dream again. For weeks and weeks those dreams had haunted her after Roy disappeared, then, two years later, just as she was starting to accept that she might not see him again, the dreams came back. One by one, all the memories she had of him came flooding back,

"_I'm Roy Mustang; I've been honored with being the student of your father." A young boy said to the girl standing opposite her._

"_I'm pleased to make your acquaintance, my name is Riza Hawkeye" She replied, equally polite and formal, despite being a few years younger than him._

The scene changed

_She saw two soldiers walking along the dead bodies of the Ishbalans, they were laughing and joking. Idiots she thought, don't they value their lives? One of the Ishbalans lying there could still be alive._

_It was amazing was people could go to get revenge,_

_Someone yelled from down on the ground. An Ishbalan was alive as she had suspected. She acted on reflex and shot him through the head and the man fell to the floor._

_Then she focused on the faces of the two med she had just saved. One of them was called Hughes if she remembered correctly, a nice man, they had spoken a few times. She then froze as she turned her eyes to the face of the other man. He looked the same, yet so different. _

"_Don't you remember me?" she said _

"_How could I forget?" He replied._

It had already been 2 years since she had settled into her new life and she had almost adjusted to her new job of teaching at a local school. She, most unsurprisingly, taught, military tactics, fighting, and most importantly, shooting to the older students. She had made new friends, well as keep in touch with her old ones. Her life was now laid-back, relaxed and could not be more different from when she worked in the military.

Maybe it was just that Roy had been making the headlines again, more active then usual, every time she saw his name in the newspaper, she felt a slight swooping sensation in her stomach. She missed him, and even missed the paperwork with the office work that came with it. The newspapers were all that she had to know whether he was alive or not. She was still in touch with the other members of Mustang's old team, and they were doing extremely well in their new lives.

She fell back onto her pillows but sleep didn't come. She wondered where the Colonel was, he was probably still in the area, as all the crimes committed by him was in Central itself but she hadn't seen hide nor hair of him in the past two years. She wished that he would at least visit her once just to let her know that he was alright but another part of her knew that it was too risky, she didn't know who might be watching and it was common knowledge among the military that she and Roy were good friends and trusted comrades. She brooded in these thoughts until her alarm clock rang for her to get up.

She brushed her teeth, washed her face, and got dressed, setting up her guns as she still carried them with her out of habit. Her breakfast consisted of just a few pieces of bread with coffee then she stepped out of her house. For some reason she was looking forward to teaching her students today, even if the school she taught at was connected and funded directly by the military.

* * *

At three in the morning, sitting his bed of the small run-down house he had taken over, Roy Mustang was already planning his next exploit. He needed to get the public on his side; they had been told that he was the villain, the evil merciless alchemist who killed innocent people. His next target was a school. Full of children, he decided to burn some of it up in broad daylight while everyone was at school. But no-one would be killed. That would get the public talking. They would start to question the word of the military. If he was such an evil murdering person, why was no-one harmed in the school, and why does he never kill anyone? Roy grinned evilly again. Better yet, the school was funded and connected directly to the military.

He planned it out carefully, if no-one was to be killed, his best chance was to burn one of the gathering halls as they weren't used as often as the classrooms, or he could set fire to the entire school, or maybe just the front block just to make a huge scene. Or, he thought evilly, all the people in the school could be drawn out and while they were outside, their school would mysteriously burst into flames behind them. That would, not doubt, raise questions as to why he blew up the school while no-one was in it.

He changed his clothes, making sure that they looked as business-like as possible, as to escape any suspicion on the way to the school. He sighed, and brushed back his hair, taking further precautions not to be recognized. He hated his hair gelled back, it just brought back memories of the day which they had buried Hughes, he then picked up his gloves and carefully put then into a pocket. Then, he walked out of the house, onto the streets as if he had a perfect right to be there, and he wasn't one of the most wanted criminals in the country. His plan was working, he was already halfway to the school and no-one had suspected him, but then again, only a select few knew what he had looked like. His team had taken the trouble to hack into the military database and delete all data of him, especially the pictures.

It was midday, and he had reached the school. He had been there once before, when he was escaping from some soldiers after they had caught a glimpse of him taking off after blowing up a laboratory. It was a complete school, with children, around 5 years old to young adults who could already work. They even had military train here. That was all the more reason to blow the school up but not hurt anyone in the process.

BANG! BANG! BANG!

_Gunshots,_ Roy recognized the sound and his mind immediately sprung to Hawkeye. _I wonder how she's doing_ he thought, his mind wondering off for a few seconds.

He snuck into the school then slipped on his gloves.

* * *

Riza smiled as she observed her class, they were in their last year of school. In the college part of the school, they were quite close to her age. They were all around twenty-one years old, and at first, they had not respected her, knowing that she was only a few years older than them and a women. After the first few lessons, winning their respect had been easy, she had after all, once been the best sharpshooter in the military and served as a sniper in the Ishbalan war. She had now become good friends with most of them and they accepted her judgment and opinions as if she was one of them, which, in a way, she was. Only a one of the eighteen students in her class knew about her past, she had stumbled upon it when she became interested in the arson of Roy Mustang. She was only twenty years old, and extremely bright. Her name was Hannah Lequa and she was already well aware of all the happenings around her, and she knew what Roy Mustang was trying to do.

"Raise your gun slightly," Riza said to Stephen King, a young man in her class who seemed to be excelling in politics and written military tactics but struggling slightly in practical work.

"Yes Miss Hawkeye" he said formally. "I told you" Riza said, sighing, "It's Hawkeye or Riza, you don't need to bother with this 'Miss' stuff"

I saw that he had corrected his stance and position so I moved onto the next group of people.

"Hannah, Grace, Amelia, how are you doing?" These three young adults were they among her close friends. She had been teaching them for 1 and a half years and they had come to her for private tuition. They nodded and smiled at her and they exchanged a few words and gossip.

"Well then, lets see you shoot"

Unsurprisingly, as they had been taught by her privately, they hit the target without any difficulty at all.

She was about to set them something more challenging when.

The alarms went off. They never went off unless it was a serious emergency, and the entire school was panicking. They all ran out, onto the street outside. Riza swore and thought quickly. They were in the wrong side of the school.

"Well, what are you waiting for?!" she yelled to her students, and they started to run back through the school.

Through the corridors which were already deserted and then out the door. Riza saw her students panting just outside the gates. She counted then quickly in her head.

_15..16..17……_ She froze, then counted them again. Still seventeen, someone was still inside.

"Who's still inside?" She shouted, trying to make herself heard. Than she realized who was missing. Hannah was still inside.

She turned back to the school gates, about to run in, just as the school burst into flames.

_Roy Mustang_ she thought.

Then she ran into the building without another thought.

Roy saw that the last group has reached the gate, then clicked his fingers and the school went up in flames. Then, on a whim, he decided to walk inside, and leave a message somewhere in the school. He froze as he saw a body of a young girl on the ground, and another women who had her back to him, she was kneeling at the girls side, shaking her…

He walked over to the two women quickly,

"We have to get her out, and quick" he said, wondering why they were still inside.

The women with her back turned to him jumped at the sound of his voice, she had obviously not been expecting company. Also, that voice was so very familiar to her.

She turned around and their eyes met.

_Hawkeye_ he thought. _We finally meet again._


	2. Chapter 2: Thoughts and Conversations

**Disclaimer: I do not own FMA**

**A/N:** Wow.... I really do take a long time to update...

Thanks to all the people for bothering to read my fanfic and a greater thanks to those who reviewed, those encourage me =)

I'm a fan of contructise critisism so if you think my fanfic is going really weird or anything, tell me and I'll cut down on the sugar I have before writing XD

I listened to a song called Tong Hua like 50 times while writing this chapter....

Enjoy!

* * *

They stared at each other. Searching each others eyes for some confirmation that they were really there, seeing each other again, that this was not just some cruel trick of fate.

Her eyes widened shock, and then flashed through so many different emotions. Shock, relief, hurt, concern.

His eyes looked into hers, mirroring the emotions. Then, a flash of something that looked like affection went through his dark eyes.

"Ri-Riza?" he stated, turning the simple name into a question as if he was questioning what he was seeing before his eyes.

Riza made an attempt to smile, despite her shock "Reporting for duty" she said softly, answering as she always did at their days at the office.

He suddenly stepped forward and embraced her. A tear dropped onto his black jacket. He somehow felt it soak through.

She was crying.

"I thought you were dead, until you started burning the buildings."

All the while the fire raged around them.

After a few seconds, or maybe even a few precious minutes, the moment of the connection between the two passed and they remembered who they were, where the were, and why they were in their current positions.

* * *

The two of them, working together once more as they did before, supported the still unconscious body of Hannah Lequa. Riza stumbled slightly when she took on the full weight of Hannah and Roy put a ungloved hand on her shoulder and kept it there until she was steady again, then a while after he had removed his hand, replaced it on her shoulder. Riza smiled at the small contact and they walked to along a few corridors.

Riza felt the hand leave her shoulder. She knew that this was goodbye, except there was nothing good about this farewell.

"I'll see you again, stay safe and never lose the will to live" he whispered in her ear and then he was walking back through the school, disappearing into the flames.

"You tell me not to lose the will to live, yet I've nearly lost it so many times because of you" Riza whispered

Riza walked forward and she saw that they had already reached the main entrance. The two of them staggered out, Riza saw that the crowd that awaited below now consisted of people in blue uniforms and armed with guns well as the students. Riza wondered for a few seconds about how she was going to lie to them before she and Hannah were surrounded by friends, students, families, and soldiers.

"Yes, she's fine"

"No, I didn't see anyone inside, there was just myself and Hannah"

"No, as I had said so before, there was no sign at all of the arsonist"

"Of course I'm not in contact with the arsonist! That is just absurd."

"No, don't have any idea why we were able to get out alive. Maybe the arsonist doesn't want any deaths?"

Again and again she answered questions, again and again she answered them, with exactly the same reply. Everyone seemed to want to know what had happened inside. Riza wondered why these reporters, soldiers, fellow teachers, and even students had to know everything single detail and wouldn't take the nothing had happened inside answer that she kept on using for an answer. They just kept coming and coming, and it seemed like there was no end to them.

Hours later, she was finally allowed to have a moment of peace while the people around had had ran out of questions and were thinking of more, Hannah had also woken up and helped in answering the questions. She left the school and walked back to her house.

Riza sighed again, she was now at home, thinking about the man that her life once revolved around. Not in a normal women's way, they were comrades and had trusted each other beyond others. His name was Roy Mustang. The thousands of question that had been thrown at her had forced her to completely forget about him for the time being in case she made a slip and gave everything away.

She missed him. That was the simple truth. She wished that he would come to see her. She knew that she wished for something that was nearly impossible. Yet, Riza clung onto the small chance that things would work out after all.

_I saw him today, we are now so apart but we still met again, by the mere will of fate, if he had never attempted to become Furher, none of this would have never happened, if he didn't have the means to, if I had never given him the secrets on my back. The day he saw my tattoo was playing over and over again like a film over and over again like it was before. All he did was tell me his plans and all I did was give his the secret but the outcome was this. We were spilt up, not only myself and him but our team. The few loyal and hardworking men who were devoted the Colonel and worked for him. Even Hughes had died for nothing and Gracia suffering for nothing._

Thoughts flew through her mind. They came and went whenever she was lying in bed or was thinking about nothing in particular. They even haunted her when something the reminded her of anything that had happened in the office, in Ishbal, or even before that. It was impossible for something to happened that did not remind her of some even do she was constantly plagued by those memories. Again and again she remember, time after time she tried to cast them from her mind but the memories stayed there, refusing to be cast from her mind.

She finally fell asleep, escaping those thoughts but plunging into another memory. A memory of one of those happier, carefree times.

_BANG! BANG! BANG!_

"_Three bull's-eye at once, one after another, that's impressive Riza" Roy said, looking up from the alchemy textbook from which he was studying from._

_The two youths were about a mile or so from the main house in which they both lived. The sun was already quite low in the sky as it was late in the afternoon and they were enjoying the very last of the Autumn. _

"_Thanks" she replied "Why don't you have a go?" she said jokingly, as they knew each other so well by then that she knew that Roy would never shoot._

""_Sure" he joked back "Just wait for me to rig the whole thing with alchemy somehow so I'll hit the centre every time"_

_The two teenagers laughed again. It was obviously a old joke between them._

_

* * *

  
_

Roy had already escaped back home, no it wasn't home to him, it was just a house he was staying in. Home had once been the apartment he stayed in when he was still Colonel, home was, although he hated to admit it, the old Hawkeye residence where he and Riza had spent so much of their childhood together.

He saw her, and now he had to wanted to see her again. After this all this time the thin dangling thread of his old life that came to him made him want to go back. Not only Riza, he wanted too see all the people he had left behind. If he had one wish, it would be for things to return to how they once were.

He face, it was full of shock and had changed ever so slightly since they had last met, her face was slightly thinner and her eyes had a more haunted look, he wondered whether he was to blame for that. What was most unexpected though, apart from him meeting her there at the school, was her choice to become a teacher. Roy had never thought that she would choose that occupation, but then again, he never thought that any of them would leave his side.

He fell back onto his bed and sighed, the plan had gone reasonably well, apart from Riza and the other girl being caught in the fire but at least they hadn't died, nothing could be perfect he supposed. He would meet them again, he was sure of it and the girl, well, maybe she was smart than she looked and would play a part.

Maybe he should visit her sometime, no that was too dangerous, she must be the one that was being watched the most, maybe he should contact Falman, Breda, or Furey, they would probably be watched less than Riza.

Roy pulled out a piece of paper from under his bed and an old pen from pocket. He grinned as he remembered all the good times he had while holding that pen, holding it over the paper, pretending to do the paperwork while in front of Riza and her shooting a bullet at it.

He quickly mapped out the city and where everyone should be living. The higher ranked officers and the lower ranked ones had their own apartments in specific places and there were the military dorms as well. Roy crossed out that space, as they were no longer members of the military, they would be living in their own houses. The space left must be where the civilians lived. Roy paused, his hand hovering over the paper as he realized that the space left that the civilians used and lived in was more then three-quarters of the city.

Marking out the school he saw that it was in a very remote part of the city, near Central Headquarters. There couldn't be anymore then a few hundred people, living there. He would disguise himself and go there after her.

Maybe he would use the Xingese woman disguise again, it seemed to work quite well.

* * *

"Hey Riza, you alright?"

"Yeah fine thanks"

"You don't sound fine"

"Really I am"

"Oh my God Riza! Don't tell me you saw _him_ again?"

"Of course not, don't be stupid Havoc"

"Ok.. I just thought…"

"Thanks for calling, see you later then"

"Bye then"

Riza dropped the phone and sighed. She hated lying to her friends but she couldn't exactly tell him either. For one thing the phones were almost certainly taped and he might let it slip somehow. He friends had been ringing her all day and it was always the same questions, are you alright? Did you see him again? And always, she gave them the exact same answer. It continued for a dew days and after her maybe the thirtieth phone call that was like that a few day later she dropped the phone and sighed, collapsing into a chair.

She decided that her apartment was too stuffy, although it was bigger and more comfortable than her old on in the military apartment buildings. Riza opened the door and walked down the stairs to the small park that was next to her apartment building. Maybe one of her friends would be there. Since leaving the military she had made so many new friends, not all of them had what was commonly known as "respectable" jobs. Maybe Aya would be there. Despite only being only 19 years old and coming from a poor family, she could play the violin beautifully and had promised to teach Riza when they both had time.

Riza walked around and after a few rounds of the park, she suddenly noticed a familiar person standing near a telephone box in the distance. She walked a bit closer and then saw the women's face.

"Gracia? Mrs. Hughes?" Riza asked quietly.

The woman looked up. It was indeed Gracia Hughes. "Liet- I mean Miss Hawkeye!" she said, surprised. She had not been paying attention for her surroundings.

Riza realized that the telephone box that Gracia was standing by was the one that her late husband had been killed at a few years earlier.

A few years earlier, on the exact same date as today.

"I haven't seen you in a while, how have you been doing?" Riza asked,

"I've been managing quite while, how about yourself? After all, you did have to build a new life for yourself."

They talked for a while, laughing occasionally when one said something that was funny or in Riza's case, witty. Eventually, they parted ways and went back to their own houses, with the shared agreement of meeting up again and catching up on each other's lives.

* * *

Roy smiled, almost not believing his luck. He had come to Maes's place of death as he did every year. Going to his gravestone was just too risky.

He would see Gracia there every year but this time, he had seen Riza as well. It almost confirmed that Riza lived in the area. He decided to follow her slightly, keeping her just in sight. She walked into a apartment and Roy quickly noted down in his brain where it was.

Something told him that Riza would be getting a very unexpected and strange looking midnight visitor sometime in the near future.


	3. Chapter 3: At Last He Comes

**A/N:** Sorry for the late update and the short chapter, I had lots of schoolwork then I managed to get myself banned from the computer...I still am actually for a very long time... so I'll take a lot longer than usual to update. Thanks to everyone who reads this story. Please review =)

* * *

Weeks after the fire, the commotion had died down and the school was already being rebuilt, no doubt the investigation was still being carried out and Riza, well as Hannah and the rest of her class had been questioned as they were the last people out of the school but as her class was out before anything happened, Hannah had been out cold when Roy came, and of course, Riza was a very good liar. As expected by everyone, the investigation yielded no results. Riza would now look at the newspaper and laugh.

Riza stretched as she got out of bed, and tried to plan, very unsuccessfully what she was going to do that day. The past few days had been just her staying at home, relaxing, or walking Black Hayate on the streets outside. She glanced at the clock next to her. 7:00am. It was Friday already.

Riza gasped as she realized that she was meeting with some old military friends in half an hour. Her, Maria, Rebecca, along with Havoc, Falman, Furey, Breda, and Denny were going to the local shooting area and just relaxing and talking. More importantly, they were keeping their skills in check in case they would never need them again. She had invited Gracia to come along, but she had received an uncertain "Well, I can't really shoot at all" answer.

Riza quickly got up and got dressed. She looked over what she had in her closest, her hand hovering over the plain white blouse, and then her eyes caught the mini-skirt that Roy had given her for a joke a few years ago. She still remembered that moment, when she opened the package and then nearly shot him. She knew that Roy had wanted her to wear it._ Over my dead body_ she thought _that was what I told him on that day and my answer remains the same._ The she saw something more appropriate that Roy had given her for her 21st birthday. A beautiful black overcoat with silver beads forming a vine and flowers along one side. She wondered whether it still fit her. She took it out and slipped it on, delighted to find out it fit her perfectly.

Ten minutes later, she walked out of the apartment she lived in, with the coat over a plain white blouse and a knee length skirt. Her hair was clipped up as usual and Hayate was trotting enthusiastically next to her. When she arrived at the shooting ground, she was only a few people standing there. To her surprise, Gracia was standing by the gate with Elysia between Furey and Havoc rather awkwardly.

"Gracia!" Riza said, smiling "You came" then looked down at Elysia smiling "Hello Elysia"

Elysia mumbled a reply. It sounded like a greeting.

"Well yes, but as you know, I can't shoot, maybe I'll just watch" Gracia replied rather nervously.

"I can teach you if you want" Riza offered "I am a teacher now you know"

Gracia accepted nervously and Riza took out a gun from the bag she brought with her and proceeded to show her how to hold the gun, how to undo het safety catch and how to aim and shoot. Riza ended the demonstration by shooting a target a few feet away. By this point everyone had arrived.

Havoc started clapping "Well thank-you for the glorious demonstration oh master teacher Hawkeye" he joked.

Riza glared at him which shut him up fairly quickly. "I wasn't showing it to you and might I remind you that I can still shoot better than you?"

* * *

Roy was still lying low, much as he would like to sneak into Riza's house and talk to her, the investigation was still going on and soldiers were paranoid and still patrolling more then often. He had decided that the safest option would be to wait for a while then go in disguise as a women. He hated it but no one ever expected him to be disguised like that. His patience was already at breaking point and couldn't wait any longer. He looked at the newspaper he had bought earlier in the day. It was so convenient that no one knew what he looked like, he could just walk out and buy something without suspicion, unless he was going to the house of one of his old friends, he was more or less free to go where ever he wanted. It was a Friday. He wouldn't go tonight. Riza would probably be out with friends.

He decided to go on Saturday night. At dusk would be a good time, not late enough to arouse suspicion as to why a women would be out so late and late enough to avoid too many people. He would just walk into her house and if she wasn't there, he had all the time in the world to wait for her anyway. The plan was pretty safe, apart from the small issue that Riza might accidently raise the alarm if he surprised her, or worse, she might shoot him.

He got his costume out.

A black, long sleeved blouse, a long skirt and a dark blue petticoat.

He grimaced as he took out the last item. Riza never should find out about this one or she really would shoot him.

A black lacy bra. There was nothing wrong about the item of clothing in question, it was after all quite appropriate for his disguise apart from one little fact.

Roy had taken it from her drawers on a dare from his team, he never figured out who sugessed it or he would have friends them already, to prove his "courage" on one of his visits to Riza's apartment.

He never knew whether she figured it was him who took it but if she ever found out, he was as good as dead, and probably a lot worse than dead.

Then he fell asleep on his bed, he would need all his strength if he were to first dress up as a women, then confront Riza, who would probably be furious at him and then, in the best case scenario, dodge a few bullets.

* * *

Riza collapsed onto her bed as she reflected on her day. What a way to spend a Saturday. First, she taught her students how to shoot and had just started a new beginner class. They had been tiring, it was like teaching toddlers how to shoot, or maybe even worse she thought. They were defiantly worse, she decided. Squabbling over little things like who was the best and who had the shiniest sword. Children these days, and they weren't even children, each over 16 years old.

Riza looked over at the clock and saw the hands, one was at the six and the other longer hand at the one. She would need to cook herself dinner now.

Riza groaned as she pushed herself of her bed and walked into the kitchen. Cooking normally wasn't that bad but today it seemed to sap more and more of her strength. And it was going to get dark soon.

She was halfway through getting some food out of the pantry when she heard a knock on the door.

She wondered whether one of her friends had made arrangements to come over but she had simply forgotten.

Riza walked over to the door quickly and opened it.

A Xingese woman stood in the doorway. Riza was sure she was never seen the woman ever before in her life, maybe she was one of those salesmen people. But there was one catch. She looked strangely familiar.

"May I help you?" Riza asked as politely as she could, she was tired and had no time for people that probably would probably sell her something she didn't need.

"Is a Elizabeth here?" The voice asked. It was strangely deep.

Not to mention familiar, very familiar. Riza had heard that voice millions of time, in both before he disappeared and in her dreams since.

And she had just heard that voice a few weeks ago.

She gasped softly.

"Roy…?" she whispered softly, turning that simple word into question.

It was so impossible, so improbable that he was standing there, in front of her.

Riza stepped aside to let him enter her apartment, still in silent shock.

Roy was already taking off his wig and already looking more like himself when Riza turned around to look at him after closing the door.

Roy looked at her, his eyes meeting hers an then opened his mouth to speak.

* * *


	4. Chapter 4: But

**A/N: I'm so sorry I havent been ablw to update, my life has been so screwed up and I'm going through alot of stress and family problems as well so my writing might have gotten a bit... crappy... Anyways, I'm not sure whether to continue this story, please use a few minutes of your time to review if you would like me to continue it (even if you don't have a account). On a brighter note, if I do continue, anyone want to waste their time by being my editor?**

* * *

"Well, you know all about me and what I am now." He started, his eyes never wavering from hers, looking intently at her face as if looking for any emotions that would break out in her face, but her face remained calm and still.

"You thought I was dead, then you found out that I was still alive. I don't know how I can forgive myself for not revealing myself to you, for that time when you believed I was dead, then, when you knew I was alive yet you could not contact me or find me in any way, simply praying that I would not be killed."

Riza nodded lightly to his grim words. She knew what he said about how she felt was true. The anguish that she felt in those times was almost unbearable, tearing at her mind and heart.

She met his eyes as he continued talking into the silence.

"I won't blame you if you hate me, there's only myself to blame." He continued, his voice was strangely contorted, as if he was trying to keep back any emotion from showing.

As she processed this new piece of information, she shook her head so lightly that Roy barely saw it.

"No, I don't blame you, it was for the best. No other way would have worked." She whispered now, forcing the words out of her mouth. As much it pained her to say it, she knew it was true.

As they came to the silent agreement that neither of them was wrong, he opened his mouth to speak into the silence, and the story began.

5 hours later Roy sighed, closed his mouth, and finally dared to look up into Riza's eyes after lowering his gaze halfway through his tale.

When he looked into her eyes, he saw the fierce determination that once existed there.

When she was looking into his, at first she saw the sorrow that was sunk in so deep, then the fire and the playfulness returned.

For those few seconds there.

It was as if nothing had ever changed in those long two years.

* * *

When Riza woke the next morning, it was in her own bed, she wondered how she got there. She tried to remember what had happened last night.

It came flooding back to her. She gasped, jumping out of bed running out of her room.

It was unlikely that Roy was still here but then again, he did have a habit of taking risks.

When she walking into her kitchen she laughed out loud.

Sure enough, he was in the one place he would be if he had remained.

Roy was lying on the table, still fast asleep, with his head buried in his arms, snoring slightly.

The anger that she would have once felt at him taking such a risk did not come to her for reason, Riza thought that the carefree lifestyle she now lived must have had something to do with it.

She walked over to him and lightly shook his shoulder. He didn't wake.

"Hey, Roy!" she whispered, then when he didn't respond, repeated the phrase louder.

Then she clapped a hand over her mouth and berated herself for forgetting where and when she was.

_What if someone had heard her?_

_What if they heard of how the criminal was named "Roy" and was once friends with her?_

_What if the military was still keeping an eye on her?_

So many reasons why they couldn't meet, yet he was there, at last, next to her.

"Hmm? Something wrong?" his voice said from next to her. Roy, had, at last woken up.

"Nothing wrong, I'm just wondering why my friends rarely leave my house and end up staying that night, do leave such a mess" Riza replied, trying to get her real question across to her without actually asking him directly.

"Oh, maybe they thought that it wouldn't be safe to walk home so late, or maybe they just wanted to spend some more time with you, catching up or whatever it is you women do" Roy replied, catching on to what she was doing.

"Well, sometimes I wonder whether their family worry, I mean, some of them are still quite young, students of mine in fact"

"Oh no, they should be fine, and their families shouldn't worry either, I mean, they should no what they are doing"

And so, the conversation continued in such a way, asking each other questions and receiving answers while all the time not appear to have more than a idle chat between friends that see each other every other day.

A few hours later, when the pair had ran out of things to talk about, Roy stood up.

"Well, I really must be going, I can't stay to bother you for too long"

Riza nodded in reply. "See you again soon, feel free to drop by when you can"

And he left out the door, and down the corridor which was thankfully empty.

Riza looked down at the floor and sighed.

"What do I do with the ridiculous costume that he has left behind?" she sighed to herself.

* * *

_When will we next meet?_

_How will we meet?_

_Will we even meet again?_

_The answer springs into her mind so easily._

_Yes_

_He went through so much, but so have I._

_Can I forgive him?_

_I went to so much, the pain I was put through has been enough to last more than a lifetime._

_When I gave my fathers secrets to him, hoping he would do this world some good, then I watched him kill thousands of innocents in Ishbal._

_Was the pain really worth it?_

_Yes, it was. This was my unwavering faith_

_But_.

There was that nagging thought at the edge of her mind, but then she kept denying it. Her heart and head were telling her different things. For the first time in many years, ever since Riza had worked under Roy, she had always had a sense of what to do but now.

Riza Hawkeye was unsure of what to do next.

"_I will follow you, even to hell" I had said to him._

_It was true once. _

_I remember all the conversations we had, from the time he lived in the same house as me, studying under my father, to the last words he had said before he had disappeared._

_He is my friend, even if I no longer follow him. That will remain the same._

Lying in bed, tossing and turning as if in a nightmare, yet fully awake and living through worse than a nightmare within her own mind.

The time ticked away.

_What should I do?_

The clock had both hands pointing straight up.

_Tick tock, tick tock. . ._

_

* * *

  
_

Roy sat at his small, scratched, hard wooden table with his head supported by his hands.

_Tick tock._

_Tick tock._

He suddenly banged his hands down onto the table.

"What the_ hell_ have I done?" he whispered to himself.

* * *

**A/N: Well, thats it, sorry for the lame start and I hope you've enjoyed it and please review.**


	5. Chapter 5: Caught

**A/N:**** Warning in advance: halfway through the part about Riza, I switched to Riza's poin of view.**

* * *

He sat there in the same place, completely still and unmoving apart, the almost rhythmical rising and falling of his chest was the only evidence that he was still alive.

Time passed.

_Breathe in._

_Breathe out._

Criminal. Dangerous Convict. Arsonist. _Murderer._

The words hit him mercilessly, but the last word struck a much deeper blow. Roy had not applied that word to himself since the days of Ishbal, the time when each and every day was worse than a living hell.

_Murderer._

_You killed innocent people who didn't deserve to die._

_You wanted to change the country after Ishbal but look what you're doing now!_

_You don't deserve to live anymore._

_You don't deserve even this life after what you've done to Riza._

_She trusted you and you scarred her._

_She trusted you and you abused her trust and used it to kill more innocents._

_Wouldn't the world be a better place if you just died?_

The voice in his head taunted him. Over and over again those thoughts invaded his head and taunted him over and over again.

He was a murderer. He was unworthy to live on. His life was a waste of the pure air around him; his existence was just polluting it. He couldn't do anything more for the country that he wanted to protect so much. He couldn't even protect the one who was most important to him.

* * *

Roy Mustang, no longer Flame Alchemist, no longer colonel, no longer the person he once was and no chance of becoming the person he wanted to be.

"Hey! Riza! Miss Hawkeye!"

Riza was woken up by the yelling and screaming that seemed to be issuing from behind her closed frond door. She yawned, sat up, and then looked over at the alarm clock that was still on the table next to her, the alarm had somehow failed to go off, or maybe she was just too tired to think about turning if off after last nights events. It was already very late in the morning and midday was fast approaching.

She now knew why there were people outside of her door knocking. She had slept right through a lesson that she was supposed to be teaching and her students had to come find her instead of meeting at the usual place at the shooting range. She yawned again, quickly getting out of bed and walking over to her closet.

"Yes, I hear you, I'll be out with you in a minute" Riza called out towards the main direction of the door.

White blouse with grey pants with her hair clipped up in the usual bun, she walked over towards the door and pulled it open, and, as expected, were the members of her class.

The members of her class, accompanied by a soldier.

Riza looked quickly at him, her eyes lingering at his shoulders where his rank would be displayed and saw that he was a major. Riza froze, thinking quick for a reason why he would be there. A major would not be outside her house, simply for keeping a few young people in order in an apartment building, even normal soldiers would not be doing such duties.

Her thoughts were interrupted by the person in question speaking out.

"I believe you are Miss Hawkeye, formally known as Lieutenant Hawkeye?" He said.

"Yes" Riza replied, her mind wondering why the corporal referred to her former title, as she was not even in the military any longer.

"We have reason to believe that you have had unlawful contact with the criminal, Roy Mustang, the former Colonel and your former commanding officer"

Riza opened her mouth to deny the claim, but her voice was stuck, and the inside of her mouth was dry as she tried to think of a plausible excuse, the smile of the soldier got wider with every second.

It also didn't help that her students were staring at her, some gaping with their mouths open, they had not known her former status, or for that matter, anything about her, apart from the fact that she was good-natured and an uncannily good shooter.

"Th-that's impossible" She managed to stutter out after what felt like to her, an hour, but in reality, no more than half a minute, but the damage was already done, she had already hesitated too long.

_How did he find out? What will happen to us now if he doesn't believe me?_

"We have found solid evidence that the two of you have been in contact, please come with me to headquarters" He said, turning his back to me and walking down the corridors, expecting me to follow.

* * *

**-Riza's POV starts here:-**

"Arrogant bastard" one of the boys in my class muttered, and I almost laughed out loud.

I started to walk after the Major, if I refused to go, they would simply say that I had something so hide, which I did.

_Hell, I thought I had already left behind the military._

The journey in the car was timeless, and stepping out I had no emotions to speak of.

_I will not tell them anything, under any circumstance._

I kept on repeating those words, over and over again in my head.

Then I saw the front gate.

A wave of familiarity swept over me. I had tried my best to avoid this place for two years, the place where I had spent some of the most important days of my life, and most of my days had grown to be part of my life.

_Was it really at this gate where I waited for Roy the entire night while he went inside? That time when I defied his orders and said I would keep on waiting for him?_

The nameless major walked forward inside and I followed. Through the main offices, the corridors, nothing had changed. Receptionist was still the same, she seemed startled and gave a small gasp as she saw me, I smiled at her, the two of us used to talk before I left.

Up more stairs.

Turning around another corner.

We walk in silence until the doors on either side start to fade out, becoming less and less and the noise was starting to die out.

_Maybe he's just going to take me to some dark corner and attempt to murder me. Too bad they didn't search me for weapons when I entered._

Reaching the end of the thought, a pair of double doors came into site.

The major stopped in front of them, knocked and opened the door, and gave me a look that told me to enter.

I stepped inside and I heard the door shut with a snap behind me.

"Well, well, Lieutenant Hawkeye" A voice said from behind a desk.

My head jerked around to look at the source of the voice.

I had only heard it a few times but it made a burning impression in my head.

_King Bradley_

_

* * *

_**A/N: So, thats it for now, thanks to Kriste94, xXWishesxX, and Resha Tsubaki for reviewing.... Also, thanks to all who have it on their alert list =)  
**

**So tell me, did you think Riza's POV was absolute crap?**

**Review please =) They make me happy and a happy Illuminating-Darkness means a faster writing and more inspired Illuminating-Darkness~!**

**And if your going to flame, instead of wasting your time and mine, tell me _why_ it was bad so I can improve...ok?**


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